Crazy Ruthie
by RMBlythe
Summary: A Marthie story, of course. No one can drive Martin absolutely up the wall quite like Ruthie Camden. But no one can bring him down as easily either. T to be safe, as usual.
1. Crazy Ruthie

_**Martin & Ruthie. Ruthie & Martin. I'm not sure I'll ever forgive 7th Heaven for tempting us with that pairing for sooo long and then never letting it happen. Well, that's the brilliance of fanfiction. I can write whatever ending I want. So there. This is a one-shot, but I may end up doing a series of 7th Heaven alternate ending one-shots. We'll see. Let me know what you think, and maybe if you have any requests? Anyone else have a better ending for that show in mind?**_

_**Also, you may want to listen to Crazy Girl by Eli Young Band while reading this. Might make the experience a little cooler :) That and it's just a great song anyway...**_

_Crazy Ruthie_

"I can't believe we're fighting about this!" Martin Brewer groaned.

"Martin, you spent the night at Sandy's apartment!" Ruthie Camden cried. How could he not see how this was a problem? She had always been afraid that one day he'd pick the mother of his child over her. Now she was scared to death that her worst nightmare had come true.

"I was babysitting Aaron," he sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose between his thumb and forefinger.

"And you said you'd be home by ten," she said, on the verge of shouting. "Ten pm, Martin. Not ten am which is when you came waltzing in that back door this morning!"

"I fell asleep, Ruthie," he said, his voice as calm and steady as ever, but his words were currently being forced through a tightly clenched jaw.

"You fell asleep before ten?" she scoffed. That was hard to believe. Martin never went to bed before midnight. He was always awake when she went to bed and awake before she got up in the morning.

"You know I felt like crap yesterday. My head is still killing me," he said, gripping the counter of the island that they were standing on either side of so hard, his knuckles turned white. "I sat down on her couch after I put Aaron to bed and the next thing I knew Sandy was waking me up this morning."

"So why didn't you call me?" she asked, because actually, when he didn't show up and she couldn't reach him on his cell phone, she'd been worried about him.

"I didn't know I needed to," he snapped. "I thought you trusted me, Ruthie. I can't believe you actually think that I would do something so stupid that would risk what you and I have."

Ruthie spoke before she even had a chance to really think about the words that came out of her mouth. "With your track record these past few years, can you blame me?"

Not only did those words which she'd been keeping inside her far too long shock her, but they caught Martin off guard as well. He felt like someone punched him in the gut. He wasn't so egotistical as to think that he'd been a saint these past few years. There'd been plenty of pretty dumb mistakes that he'd made. But Ruthie... Ruthie had been right there beside him through it all. She was so much stronger than he was, and there were moments when he knew he would have fallen if she would not have been there to help him carry on. When it had seemed as though everyone else had given up on him, abandoned him, and left him to fend for himself, she had stuck by him when he needed her most. But now, to have her throw it all back in his face, that hurt more than he ever could have imagined. In his wounded anger, Martin said the first thing that came to his mind too. "At least I don't have Sandy's name tattooed across my back while I'm engaged to you!"

Ruthie's jaw dropped, and for once in her life she was completely speechless.

"How is T-Bone anyway? That's who you've been going to see when you disappear for hours on end these past few months, right?"

"You want to know what I've been doing, Martin? Fine," she said, lifting up her shirt to expose her lower back. Where 'T-BONE' had once been, 'MARTIN' was now permanently set on her beautiful tanned skin that was red and irritated. "This is what I've been doing, and it took a month because changing all that hurt like hell! I was going to surprise you on our wedding night."

Ruthie readjusted her shirt and turned back around to face him. She folded her arms across her chest and shrugged her shoulders a bit uncomfortably. "So... surprise."

Now Martin was at a loss for words. Although he was touched, he was also completely caught off guard by what she had done. "Ruthie, I..."

"You know what, Martin? Here's another surprise for you," she said, tears burning her eyes, but she refused to let him see her cry. She slid the diamond ring off her finger and dropped it on the counter between them. "We obviously don't trust each other, and if we can't even have a simple conversation with each other now, getting married is the last thing we should be doing."

Martin was a proud man, if nothing else. It took a lot to make him accept help from others, and as a general rule, he almost never asked for it. He never backed down from a fight, and he was always the last one to admit defeat. Yet, as he looked from that ring and back to Ruthie, all the walls he'd been building around himself his whole life came tumbling down, and he did something he'd never done before. He begged. "Ruthie, please," he said, choking on his own words, "please don't do this."

"Leave Martin," she said simply, her heart aching and her head spinning. When Martin did not move an inch, she said again, her voice growing louder with every word that fell from her lips, "I mean it. Get out of here! I don't care where you go, just so long as it's somewhere far away! I never want to see your face again, Martin Brewer!"

"Fine," he ground out, the walls coming up again as he set his jaw against all the emotion that was threatening to overwhelm him. Leaving the ring where she had dropped it, he headed towards the same door he had come through this morning. "Goodbye Ruthie Camden."

Martin slammed the door behind him and the whole house shuddered. Normally, Ruthie would have been tempted to go after him, but just now she was too angry to even see straight. So instead, she sprinted up the stairs to her attic room, slamming the door shut behind her. Looking around, she tried to find something to take her anger out on. Her helpless old stuffed animals would have to do. She picked each one up off the shelf, hurling it against the far wall, and screaming at the top of her lungs as she did so. She was grateful her dad was still at Church and her mom had taken the twins shopping. Being mad was so much easier when you didn't have someone trying to calm you down from the other side of your locked bedroom door.

When she had run out of stuffed animals to throw, her cell phone started to ring. For a moment, her heart stopped. Was it Martin? Part of her wanted it to be, but another part didn't. Daring to look at the caller ID, she saw it was her older sister, Lucy Kinkirk. Ruthie answered it, but regretted it almost immediately. Unknowingly, Lucy poured salt on an open wound. "Hey, Mom's going to get the boys fitted for their tuxes. I told her we'd meet her there so we can look at some bridesmaids and flower girl dresses."

"No!" Ruthie snapped harshly.

"What?" Lucy asked, shocked by her sister's response.

"I said no!" she shouted into the phone. "The wedding's off, ok? I hate Martin Brewer! I wish I never would have met him!"

Before Lucy could say another word, Ruthie hung up on her. She sank to her knees on the floor of her room, the severity of the situation finally hitting her. Martin was gone. She had chased him away for good this time. And she knew he would not be coming back. Tears began to flow down her cheeks and sobs shook her entire body. And it felt like they would never stop.

Martin sat at the bar at The Pool Hall rubbing his temples, trying to ease the throbbing pain in his head, which had grown steadily worse since his fight with Ruthie. How could he have let this happen? He'd said and done some pretty stupid stuff before, but he knew he'd really gone too far this time. He had a horrible feeling in the pit of his stomach, that now matter what he did, he'd never get her back.

"Thought you'd be here," an all too familiar voice said from behind him.

"How stupid of me to think that I could go somewhere to have some time alone," Martin said with biting sarcasm, not even bothering to look up as Kevin Kinkirk sat down beside him.

"In this family, yeah, it was," Kevin smirked. Then, indicating to the various bottles behind the bar, he said, "I know you're 21 now, Martin, but none of this will help you fix whatever happened between you and Ruthie."

"Ok one, I've been drinking water. Even I know that alcohol is not what I need in my system right now," Martin sighed, finally turning to look at Kevin. "And two, how do you already know about Ruthie and me?"

"Once again, you underestimate this family. Especially the women in this family."

Martin gave Kevin an irritated look. He just wasn't in the mood today. Kevin sighed. "Lucy called Ruthie. Ruthie told her that the wedding is off, that she hates you, and wishes you two never would have met. Lucy then called me and asked me to come find you. So here I am."

"Yeah, here you are," Martin sighed, with little to no enthusiasm.

"You wanna tell me what happened?"

"Not really. But I know you won't leave me alone until I do, so here it goes," Martin sighed. "I babysat Aaron last night. Ruthie knew this and was fine with it."

"Well he is your son," Kevin said. "I don't see how she could not be fine with it."

"Right, but that wasn't the problem."

"Ok, what was the problem?" Kevin said, feeling himself slipping into that mode where he was half police officer, half overly protective big brother.

"The problem was that I fell asleep on Sandy's couch. She had to wake me up this morning, and Ruthie's convinced I did more than just crash on the couch."

"Did you tell her that's all it was?"

"Yes. Multiple times," Martin groaned, pinching the bridge of his nose again. "She said she doesn't believe me because of my track record though."

Kevin sighed and put his hand on Martin's shoulder. "Martin," he said slowly, "you had a baby with Sandy. You wanted to marry Sandy. Surely you can see where Ruthie's coming from here."

"I guess," Martin said, watching the ice swirl around in his glass as he mixed it around with his straw. He'd use any distraction to not have to look at Kevin when he said, "Unfortunately I responded with something really stupid after she said that."

Kevin raised one eyebrow warily. "What did you say?"

"I accused her of cheating on me with T-Bone, when really she's been sneaking out so she can get her tattoo changed to my name instead of his. It was supposed to be a surprise but I definitely ruined that."

Kevin let out a low whistle. "No wonder she's mad at you."

"Yeah, well I didn't think she'd get so mad she'd want to call of the wedding and say she hated me," Martin said quietly. Out of everyone in the world to hate him, it hurt the most when it came from Ruthie.

Kevin cleared his throat. "Alright," he said, "I know you usually get your advice from Simon, but we've known each other for a while now, and I've known Ruthie even longer, so here it goes. Ruthie is... a very passionate person. She's hot tempered, stubborn, and even a little intimidating sometimes. You have a quick temper, you're just as stubborn as she is, and I'm not gonna lie, there are times when I want to hit you."

"You know, I think I might stick with Simon as far as advice goes, but thanks for trying."

"I'm not done," Kevin said, looking Martin straight in the eye. "Despite all that I just said, when you and Ruthie are together... it just works. You can get each other worked up better than anyone else can, but you also calm each other down. You balance each other out. When one of you blows their top, the other one steps in and saves the day. That's what makes you two perfect."

"Wish I could make her see that," Martin said. "Calling off the wedding was the last thing I wanted to do. We've waited so long to be together. I'm not ready to give her up yet."

"Why don't you try telling her that?" Kevin said, standing up to leave. "After all, you're the only one who she'll listen to."

Martin lifted the latch of the back gate and entered the Camden's backyard. As usual, the backdoor was unlocked. Stepping inside he found Mrs. Camden and Lucy standing in the kitchen. "Martin!" Mrs. Camden gasped, rushing over to him and embracing him.

He hugged the woman who was the closest thing to a mother that he had, feeling his heart break all over again. When Annie Camden let go of him, he found himself in Lucy's arms. "Did Kevin find you?" she asked.

"Yeah, we had a, uh... nice talk," he said somewhat awkwardly. "Is Ruthie here?"

"Upstairs in her room. She won't come out or talk to anyone," Annie said.

"Would you mind if I gave it a try?" he asked.

"We'd love it if you did," Annie smiled.

One flight of stairs down, Martin entered the familiar hallway where he'd once lived, and headed towards the other set of stairs that would take him to the attic room which had once been coveted by all the Camden children. Walking past the twin's room, he heard, "Martin?"

He turned to see Sam and David looking up at him. "Hey guys," he said, putting on a fake smile as he knelt down to their level.

"Are you going to talk to Ruthie?" David asked.

"She's really sad," Sam added. "She yelled at Lucy and Mom."

Their innocent words were daggers to Martin's heart. "Yeah guys, I am going to talk to her. I know she's really sad, but I'm gonna try to make it better."

"Do you still love her?" David asked.

"Are you two still getting married?" Sam asked.

"Yes, I still love her," Martin said sadly, "and, if she wants to, we're still getting married."

"Ruthie's loved you forever," Sam smiled.

"Yeah. She'll marry you," David said confidently before they both went back into their room to resume whatever they had been doing. Martin watched them go and desperately hoped they were right.

Entering the attic, Martin came face to face with Ruthie's closed, and locked, bedroom door. He gripped the stair railing, his headache coming back full force. How could she even think he could ever go back to Sandy? Didn't she see how much he loved her?

Knocking on the door, Martin called, "Ruthie? It's me."

A moment of heart stopping silence passed, and then he heard, "Martin?"

There was shock in her voice, but she didn't sound angry. A spark of hope flashed within him, until she apparently remembered their fight and shouted, "Get out of here, Martin! I thought I told you I never wanted to see you again!"

"Technically, unless you open this door, you can't see me," he teased the way they always did... or used to, anyway. "I'm not breaking any rules."

He heard her walk across the floor, and then the door clicked into the unlocked position. She opened it just far enough for them to have eye contact. "There," she said, "I see you, now go away."

But Martin had seen an opportunity and he did not hesitate to take it. "Nope," he said, sticking his foot in the door. He pushed against the door, and although she leaned her entire body weight against the other side of it, he managed to open it all the way.

"Ok," she snapped, sitting down on her bed and facing away from him. "You've proved you're really strong. Will you leave now?"

"No," he said, moving to sit down beside her. "And I won't until we talk."

"Ruthie," he said softly, "I love you more than anything in this world."

"I want to believe you," she sighed. "But we've tried this before, Martin. Something always gets in the way though, and usually, it's another girl. I'm not trying to be mean, but it's true. Sandy, and Jane, Celia, and Margaret, and more that I can't even remember right now. I want us to be together, but it just hurts too much."

"I know I've put you through a lot," he sighed. "But I will never hurt you again."

He covered her hand with his, but she pulled away. "Ruthie, what do you want me to say? I know what I did was stupid! And I regret every single thing I did that ever put distance between you and I. Ruthie, you... you are the best thing that has ever happened to me."

"Martin," she said, "I have loved you my whole life. The moment I met you, I knew I loved you. But..."

"But nothing," he said, taking her hands in his and rejoicing when she did not pull away. "Yes, we both have bad tempers. I can't guarantee that they won't flare up and result in a huge fight. But I know that if anyone can get me to shut up and give in, it's you. And I know that if anyone is going calm you down and make you happy again, it's me."

Still holding tightly to his hands, Ruthie turned her head away so he wouldn't see the tears that were falling down her cheeks. He kissed her curly brown hair and murmured, "Don't hide from me, Ruthie Camden."

She sniffed and looked up at him. "Promise to never let me, Martin."

He let go of her hands so he could wrap his arms around her. She buried her head against his chest, and he felt her tears soak through his shirt. "I promise," he whispered, choked by his own emotions as he held the one woman he loved.

"Will you still marry me?" she said suddenly into his chest.

"Crazy girl," he smiled, tilting her head up so he could look her in the eye. "Of course I will. If you can forgive me."

"Of course," she smiled back, her heart soaring. "Do you forgive me?"

"There's nothing to forgive," he said, before leaning down and kissing her lips, years of love pouring through both of them in that one kiss.


	2. Sandy's Boys

_**Hello 7th Heaven fans! Here is another one-shot for how I think things should have ended. Let's just forget the 11th season ever happened, yeah? *Sigh* so sad they just could not figure out how to end it. They kept trying and it kept getting worse. Oh well, that's what fanfiction's for, right? Right. Anyway, this one involves Simon and Sandy mainly, with a little bit of Martin. I can't **_**not**_** put him in somewhere... R&R? I'd love to hear from you! (**__Don't own 7th Heaven or recognizable song lyrics__**)**_

_Sandy's Boys_

"Sandy," Simon said, looking into the dark eyes of the woman standing before him. "I can't get you out of my head. You're all I can think about anymore. When I wake up in the morning, all I want to do is hear your voice. When I close my eyes at night, I see your beautiful face in my dreams. I love you, Sandy Jameson."

Feeling a smile stretch over her face, she whispered through the tears that sprang to her eyes, "I love you too, Simon Camden."

Days stretched into months. Sandy could not ever remember being this happy, and neither could Simon. It was as if all their lives they had been searching for their perfect match, somehow missing the person who was standing right in front of them. But now that they'd found each other, there was no way either one of them was letting the other one go.

One night, as Sandy slept peacefully beside Simon, a shrill cry pierced the air. Well, obviously it wasn't that loud, because Simon didn't even stir. But to Sandy's well trained ears, her son's pitiful wail was enough to jolt her from the deepest of sleep. Easing out of bed so as not to wake her boyfriend, Sandy made her way to Aaron's room. Her three year old son was sitting up in bed, tears streaming down his cheeks. "Momma," he sniffed, reaching his arms out to her the minute he laid eyes on her. Sandy's heart broke and she rushed over to the bed, scooping him up in her arms.

Holding him close, she moved over to the rocking chair in the small room and sat down. She positioned him against her chest, gently stroking his hair as she began to sing the song she had sang to him since they day he was born, "Close your eyes, have no fear. The monster's gone, he's on the run, and your mommy's here. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful, beautiful boy. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful, beautiful boy."

As Aaron's eyes drifted shut, she looked at her baby boy, Aaron Jameson- Brewer. He was such a cute baby, surely he'd grow up to be a handsome man. She knew he'd break the hearts of many girls someday, and probably cause his poor old mother lots of heartache along the way too. But as she thought of all this, she looked at the hair that she still ran her fingers lightly through. Although it had been dark when he was born, it was beginning to lighten as he got older. And his skin was not nearly as tan as hers or Martin's was. Suddenly, the thought that she had once shoved to the farthest corner of her mind resurfaced. Was this Martin Brewer's child? She had once been so sure, but... there had been that one night. But it was just one night. Surely that wouldn't... well, then again, she and Martin had only been together once too. This was Martin Brewer's son, right? Honestly, Sandy wasn't sure anymore. Because the older Aaron got, the less he looked like Martin.

And the more he looked like Simon.

"I'll see you after work, ok?" Simon asked a few days later, grabbing his jacket off the back of the couch.

"Ok," she nodded, absentmindedly washing the breakfast dishes in the sink.

Simon watched her for a minute. Something was wrong. He didn't know how he knew it, but he did. He walked back into the small kitchen area of the apartment they shared, standing behind her and wrapping his arms around her waist. "Are you ok?" he asked.

"Fine," she said quickly. "Aaron didn't sleep well last night. I'm just a little tired." Technically only part of that was a lie. Aaron had slept fine, but she really was tired. Turns out laying awake every night wondering who the father of your child is can be pretty exhausting.

"I'm sorry. I wish I would've heard him. I could've helped you."

"No, you needed to sleep," she sighed.

"How about I stay home today and watch him so you can rest?" he asked as she turned around in his arms.

"Simon, I'm really ok," she insisted with a laugh, hoping he wouldn't be able to tell that it was fake. "Go to work, I'll be fine."

"Ok, but I'm coming home early and I'm gonna make dinner for the three of us," he said decidedly.

"Simon..."

"I won't take no for an answer," he whispered, his lips hovering above hers.

Sandy sighed and wrapped her arms around him. "I love you."

"Love you more," he smiled before kissing her soundly. They broke apart gasping for a breath and Simon leaned his forehead against hers. "I'll see you tonight."

"Ok," she smiled as he kissed her on the cheek and said goodbye to Aaron before heading out the door.

When he had gone she fell onto the couch and groaned. Ever since that horrid little thought had popped back into her head, she couldn't get it to go away. She watched Aaron play on the floor, and knew what she had to do. She picked up the phone and dialed the all too familiar number. "Hello?" a deep voice said on the other end.

"Martin? It's Sandy," she said, taking a shaky breath. "We need to talk."

"What's up? Is Aaron ok?" he asked, and she heard the panic rising in his voice. Considering the circumstances, and rough beginnings, Martin had turned out to be a pretty good dad. He truly loved Aaron, and Sandy knew that he'd do anything for him. Which made this so much harder.

"He's fine," she sighed heavily. "That's not what we need to talk about. Well, I mean, it is, but..."

"Sandy," he said, obviously trying to be patient with her, "what exactly did you call me for?"

"Can you come over this afternoon? It'd just be easier to tell you in person." And less cruel, but she didn't add that.

"Yeah, I'll be over around two. Ok?"

"Thanks, see you then."

"Now will you tell me what all this is about?" Martin asked as he sat down on the couch across from Sandy.

Sandy's heart raced within her chest. She had been thinking all day about how she could ever possibly phrase this to soften the blow, but now, she decided to go with the cold hard truth. And then, of course, back pedal and rattle off explanations like a mad woman. Taking a deep breath, she said, "I want to give Aaron a paternity test."

"What?" Martin shouted as he jumped up off the couch, and Sandy was immediately grateful she had taken Aaron to Lucy and Kevin's for the day. "Why would he need a paternity test?"

"So we know for sure who his father is," she explained, trying to stay calm. One of them had to.

"What does that mean? I'm his father!" he cried, and she could practically see the veins sticking out of his neck. Then, as he watched her look at him with a soft and sympathetic look in her brown eyes, something clicked in his head. His voice dropped a few decibels and he said, "I _am_ his father, aren't I?"

Looking at his heart broken expression, Sandy felt hot tears spring to her eyes. She may not have ever loved him, but she cared for him deeply. "I don't know," she whispered. "I thought you were. I was so sure of it. But Martin, have you looked at Aaron lately? His hair just keeps getting lighter, his skin isn't as dark as yours, and his features... Martin he just doesn't look like you."

"Maybe... maybe he favors you," Martin said, trying to put this all together in his head.

"Maybe," she sighed, but she had seen the realization in his eyes. "Wouldn't it be nice to know for sure though?"

"When you told me you were pregnant," he said, sitting down heavily in a chair, "I asked you if the baby was mine. Repeatedly. And you told me, repeatedly, without a doubt that yes, he was mine. Why are you all of a sudden now not so sure?"

"I wasn't even sure then honestly," she said, shaking her head slightly. "But I was scared. My first thought was that it was you because you were the most recent guy I'd been with. So I went with that because it made sense. But, a few days before we were together, I was with another guy."

"Ok so first you say that Aaron is mine, and I spend _three years_ of my life supporting and loving _my son_," Martin said, fighting to keep his emotions in check, "so that you can now tell me that he's _not_ my son? That he's some other guy's kid? Who is he anyway? Am I just supposed to hand Aaron over to some total stranger and forget about everything that's happened?"

"No," Sandy cried. "Of course not! You will always be a big part of Aaron's life no matter what. He will want you to be and so will I. You are a great dad, Martin. But if Aaron isn't yours, don't you think his biological father deserves to know he has a child?"

Martin contemplated this for less than a minute. "No," he said fiercely, "I don't. Sandy, I don't even know this guy! And even if Aaron isn't my biological son, I love him like he is! You can't expect me just to step back and watch whoever it is raise him!"

"Simon," she said softly.

"What?" Martin cried. "What does Simon have to do with any of this?"

"If Aaron isn't your son," she sighed, a few tears spilling over her cheeks, "the only other person who could be his father is Simon."

Martin was stunned into silence. When he had finally found his voice, he said, "Simon. Simon Camden?"

Sandy rolled her eyes. "No. Simon Says," she laughed humorlessly in a failed attempt to lighten the mood.

Martin ignored her. "Does he know about this?"

"No, but I'm going to talk to him about it tonight."

Martin nodded, then looked at her and took in her tear stained face and asked quietly, "Do you want me to be here when you do? For support, or something?"

"That's really sweet, Martin," she smiled. "But I think I can manage."

Martin nodded again, because, honestly, he didn't know what else to do. He never thought his life could possibly get more complicated, but here it was. A whole lot more complicated than he ever wanted to deal with. But, because of Aaron, deal with it he must. "I know this might seem weird," he said, "but would you mind if I took Aaron tonight? I just kinda want to be with him, you know?"

"I know," she smiled. "I'm sure he'd love to spend some time with you."

"Thanks," he said. "I guess I'll see you tomorrow then."

When he headed towards the door, Sandy jumped up and ran over to him. "Martin, wait," she said, throwing her arms around his neck and pulling him into a tight hug. "I'm sorry," she whispered, "for everything."

"You don't have anything to be sorry for," he said softly. "Aaron is the best thing that ever happened to me."

Sandy felt her heart break in half as she watched him walk out the door. She sighed and leaned heavily against it. One down, one to go.

"Hey," Simon called when he entered the small apartment.

"Hi," Sandy smiled, watching him place an arm full of groceries in the kitchen.

"How was your day?"

"Interesting," she said slowly. And it's about to get a whole lot more so.

"I guess that's good," he chuckled as he began to get out some pots and pans. She got up from the couch and went to sit at the counter to watch him cook. Simon suddenly realized something. "Where's Aaron?"

"Martin took him for tonight," she said. "It's just you and me."

"I like the sound of that," he smiled, leaning across the counter to briefly kiss her lips. Sandy hoped that after their discussion, he'd still like the sound of it.

After dinner, Sandy sat wrapped in Simon's arms, knowing there was no place she would rather be. She wished she didn't have to tell him her suspicions about Aaron. What if it scared him away? She couldn't lose him.

She felt Simon's arms tighten around her. "Are you ok?" he asked worriedly. "What's wrong?"

"I have to talk to you about something, and I don't really know how to go about it," she sighed, turning to look at him.

"You know you can tell me anything," he said with a smile. How she loved that smile.

"You and I have always been close right?" she said cautiously. "I mean, even before we were together, you were my best friend. When things got tough, I knew I could always come to you."

"And you still can," he said, wiping away a tear that rolled down her face. What the heck was wrong, and why wouldn't she tell him?

"I know," she nodded. She took a deep breath before she said quietly, "Do you remember that night three years ago? You came by my apartment after a particularly bad fight with Rose. I was still reeling from meeting my dad for the first time, and we... well, we... comforted each other."

Simon's green eyes grew soft. "I remember."

"I started to have feelings for you after that night, Simon. Real, honest to goodness feelings, that I knew I shouldn't have for my friend's fiancé. When Martin came up to visit you a few days later, I slept with him to try and forget about you. But it didn't work. I loved you then and I love you now."

"I had no idea," Simon sighed, caressing her cheek. She closed her eyes and leaned into his touch. "You should have told me. I wish I would've known."

"You were engaged to Rose," she shrugged. "There wasn't anything you or I could've done about it then. But now..."

"Now we're together, and that's all that matters."

Sandy shook her head. "Aaron also matters now, and Simon," she said slowly, "I don't think Aaron is Martin's son."

Simon was confused. "Then who's son is he?"

"Yours."

A father. He could quite possibly be a father. A father! Holy cow. Simon groaned and ran his fingers through his short blonde hair. Could it be true? Could he be Aaron's real father? It was possible, but...

Geez. This morning everything had been fine. Everything had made sense. For once in his life everything was under control! And now, well now his world had been turned upside down. He wasn't ready to be a father! Heck, he had just recently figured out how to take care of himself! And sure, he had been thinking about asking Sandy to marry him. He had a ring picked out and everything. He was aware that he would then become Aaron's step-father, and he had been alright with that. _Excited_, even. But for some reason, actually being Aaron's real dad scared the crap out of him. He was responsible now, not Martin. He couldn't blame Martin if something happened, not that he ever would. Even if he wanted to, he couldn't though. Because Aaron was _his son_. His responsibility. His child.

Suddenly their apartment felt incredibly small. He couldn't be here. He had to get out. Grabbing his jacket and keys, he left the apartment while Sandy slept alone in their bedroom.

Somehow, he ended up at the church, sitting in the pew he normally shared with the rest of his family. The lights were off and the moonlight danced across the floor. The pulpit where his father had once preached, and where his sister and girlfriend now gave their sermons loomed above him. The piano lay quiet. Never had he seen the church so empty. Perhaps it was because of this, combined with all the questions and doubts circling through his head, that caused Simon Camden to do something he hadn't done in years. Dropping to his knees, he prayed.

"Hey, God. It's me, Simon. I know you haven't heard from me in a while, and I'm sorry about that. I mean, I go to church and everything, but I haven't really been paying attention. I've really just been going through the motions. But I guess You know that, huh? Well, I didn't mean to stay away so long. It's just, things got so bad so quickly... I felt lost. I didn't know where You were." Simon paused, drawing a deep shuddering breath, trying to find the strength to continue on with this prayer that was long over due. "But I've met this girl... I guess You know that, too. Her name's Sandy. She is the best thing that has ever happened to me. She makes me the man I have always wanted to be. Really, she's the one that led me back to You when no one else could. I love her with all of my heart. But Aaron..." Simon sighed, squeezing his eyes shut against his tears. "What if I'm not ready?" he cried, a sob in his throat. "I'm not... I'm not good enough to be his father. I don't deserve it. He deserves better than me. Oh God... I haven't asked You for anything. After You gave me Happy, I promised I never would. But God, if You could help me out just one more time... Make me a good father. That's all I want, I swear it's all I'll ever need. Please, oh God, please... Make me a good father for my son..."

"Simon?"

Jerking his head up, Simon saw his sister Lucy standing up at the alter. She was gently swaying her newborn daughter, Beverly. "Luce?" he asked, quickly swiping the tears from his eyes. "What are you doing here?"

"Beverly couldn't sleep, and neither could I, really. So I thought a ride in the car would help her."

"Obviously it did," he said as she came to sit beside him. He peered at his niece who was sleeping soundly, snuggled into a warm blanket in her mother's arms. A small smile crossed his lips. Lucy noticed.

"Do you want to hold her?"

"Won't she wake up?"

"Probably not. She's taking after Kevin already. Once she's asleep, there's no waking her up. Here, my arms are getting tired." Simon took the baby from his sister, cradling her against his chest. He smiled down at her, stroking her soft cheek with one of his fingers. With tears in her eyes, Lucy smiled proudly at him. "You already are a good father, Simon. Aaron is lucky to have you."

"You heard, huh?"

Lucy nodded. "Is Aaron really your son?"

"We're not sure yet," he sighed. "Sandy wants to have a paternity test done."

"What does Martin say about this?"

"Sandy said he's on board with it."

"And you're... not?" Lucy asked, her brow furrowing as she tried to piece this information together.

"I am, I just... It's a big deal. A really big deal. I might be a father, Luce!"

"Didn't you want to have kids with Sandy someday?" Lucy asked.

"Well, yeah of course, but..."

"But what? What if Aaron is your son? What if you already have a child that is a part of you and Sandy?"

Simon thought about that. Really, it might not be so bad. After all, that is what he wanted. A little person he and Sandy had made together. What if he already had everything he'd ever wanted?

"Simon," Lucy said softly. He turned to look at her. "I've seen you with Aaron. You already are a good father. You have nothing to worry about. Everything will work out in the end. It always does. We're Camdens."

Simon laughed and nodded. Something about the way Lucy said it, he could believe it. Whether or not he was Aaron's biological father, he would be a fixed figure in his life. He was sure of that. He loved him and he loved Sandy. They were his family. And someday, someday very soon he hoped, they would be Camdens too.

A few weeks later, it was revealed that Aaron was in fact the son of Simon Camden. Martin accepted the news with as much grace as he could muster, knowing Simon would take care of Aaron. "Honestly," Martin told Simon, "there's no one else I'd trust him with. You're one of my best friends. I know you'll take care of him."

"Thanks," Simon nodded. "We still want you in his life, you know. You're a part of our family. You always will be."

"I appreciate that. I guess you two will be changing his name then?"

Sandy nodded. "Yeah, we will. Aaron Brewer Camden."

"Thank you," Martin nodded, blinking rapidly to clear the tears from his eyes. "Well," he sniffed, a smile forming on his face, "I'm off to see you sister. With any luck, her name just might change too."

"You will need all the luck you can get with that one!" Simon laughed. "Please take her off my hands."

"You are horrible!" Sandy scolded him, playfully hitting him on the arm.

Martin shook his head as he headed out the door. "I'll talk to you guys later."

"Bye!" Sandy called, closing the door behind him before heading to Aaron's room. Simon was bent over the crib, singing.

"Close your eyes, have no fear. The monster's gone, he's on the run, and your daddy's here. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful, beautiful boy. Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful, beautiful boy."

Sandy watched from the doorway, her heart overflowing with love for her boys. When Aaron was asleep, Simon walked over to her, smiling and kissing her forehead. With one last look at their son, they closed the door an slipped out of the nursery. In the living room, Simon bent his head to kiss her, making her toes curl. "So speaking of all this name changing..." he whispered. She watched as he got down on one knee before her, pulling a small box from his pocket. Opening the lid, he revealed a gorgeous diamond ring. She gasped. "Sandy Jameson, it seems like my whole life I've been lost. I was traveling down a dark path, taking all the wrong turns. Until I met you, that is. You've made me happier than I ever dared dream I could be. You've given me a son. You've given me your love. Both of which are far more than I deserve. So, Sandy Jameson, will you let me give you something in return? Will you take my last name?"

Laughing through her tears, Sandy nodded. "Yes, of course I will!"


End file.
